Name: The Trade WindsHeight: 382 feet tall - 27 floorsStatus: Start 2005 - End 2007 Status: Unknown, it may be under construction.Facts: This one, along with it's twin, will be the two tallest buildings on Galveston Island.

The Beaches here are decent. I would always find Sea Weed though and lots of it on the beach. Mustang Island is prob the top of the chain in this area. Corpus has a small downtown, with not a whole lot of night life in comparison to say San Antonio or Austin. Growth in Corpus is steady. It won't be a HUGE City anytime soon. I believe it is sitting somewhere around 300,000 at the moment if I am not mistaken. Getting around in Corpus is easy. Just take the SPID or Crosstown Expressways to get from one side of the city to the other. Traffic is never that bad in comparison to other cities in Texas.

Galveston:

Nice town with lots of history. Its proximity to Houston is what makes it a nice destination, especially for the cruise industry which has taken a strong hold on the economy. Beaches, again, are nothing fabulous, but very do-able. Restaurants and shopping here are pretty decent too. Mardi Grah is ALOT of fun here. This also won't be a huge city anytime soon, but really it doesn't need to be.

RGV/South Padre Island

You want to talk exploding population, just go down to the Rio Grande Valley. This is one of the fastest growing areas in the nation. Overall, this is not a pretty area, unless you hit South Padre Island. South Padre Island has some of the prettiest beaches in Texas, and deep blue water to match! Commercialism has not really hit South Padre yet. There are still alot of "mom and pop" shops on the island, and truthfully those shops are what make South Padre so special bc of the unique store fronts.

Quite frankly, all three have their unique atribute. I don't think one has the upper hand over the others. Right now, I would have to say that South Padre has the brightest future in terms of growth. Corpus Christi and Galveston are growing too and are both nice cities.

Towers to rise on South Padre
At 30 stories each, structures will be island's tallest
By NANCY SARNOFF
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle

Randall Davis, a Houston loft developer who recently started building his first condominium project in Galveston, is heading to another coastal market: South Padre Island.

The Randall Davis Co. is planning to build a pair of condominium towers and 11 beachfront bungalows in the South Texas resort town. Each tower will have 30 stories, making the project his tallest yet.

The new project is part of a wave of development sweeping the island in the Gulf of Mexico, which locals call the "tropical tip of Texas."

In the past five years, the island has changed dramatically, with new condos, hotels and businesses, said Alta Monroe of Alta Monroe Real Estate.

"We're becoming more and more of a year-round resort," the Padre Island real estate broker said.

Monroe said at least six condominium projects are in the pipeline there.

The demand, she said, is coming from buyers from all over Texas as well as from places as far away as Florida and California.

"Their real estate has been so expensive that when they come to Padre and see what they can get for half of what they sold their house for, they can't believe it," Monroe said.

That includes people from Florida who began looking at South Texas after the recent onslaught of hurricanes in their home state, she said.

This new crop of buyers, Monroe said, is willing to spend more than $400,000 for a

Padre Island condo.

Davis said the South Padre project is in keeping with his "current theme of building on the coast."

One of the buildings will be called the Sapphire, but Davis hasn't picked a name for the second. Prices will range from $375,000 and reach $1.8 million for a 4,600-square-foot penthouse.

Davis said he has already received more than 100 deposits on units, using leads generated from a mailing.

"I'm absolutely ecstatic about the response," said Davis, who will throw a party for prospective buyers Monday on South Padre.

The 182-unit project will be built next to the Sheraton on Padre Boulevard. The Sheraton's owner, Mexico-based Posadas USA, owns the land and is a partner with Davis on the development.

The hotel will provide services to condo residents, including concierge, valet and room service. Residents will have access to the Sheraton's pool.

The two towers will also have their own swimming pools, with cabanas and an outdoor bar.

Every unit will face the Gulf of Mexico and contain two balconies — one with an outdoor kitchen and grill.

Houston-based Ziegler Cooper Architects designed the project. Construction is expected to start by November.

Last year, Davis announced plans to build beachfront condominiums in Galveston at the corner of Seawall Boulevard and Broadway. The project, Emerald by the Sea, is a 15-story building with 93 units. Prices range from around $250,000 to $1 million.

^Hey! Why hasn't this news reached SPI? I'm always on the look out for this construction news but you really blew me away with this one. Finally, a building that's at least 30-stories and I bet this is just the beginning.

Just think of the Florida boom happening on SPI within a few short years. Even better is that we don't get pounded as frequently as Florida has been lately (4 times in 1 year! Ouch!!). SPI is the perfect place for the next boom cuz it's really beautiful and very affordable.

I just hope that some of the construction boom touches B'ville.
We need some needed height here desperately!!

Does anyone have information on the proposed second causeway connecting SPI with the mainland? I'm curious as to the location of the bridge.. will this connect to the southern tip of the island?... or east-west across the Laguna Madre (to the north of the current causeway)?

__________________Austin.Texas.USAHome of the 2005 National Champion Texas Longhorns

Right now, there's a huge fight between SPI and Port Isabel over the location of the 2nd causeway. SPI wants it at the far northern end and PI wants it built next to the existing causeway.

If you ask me, the preferred location is the northern part cuz PI just can't handle the traffic and not to mention those bastard PI cops who are waiting in every freakin corner waiting to give you a ticket. That's how PI survives and if the 2nd causeway is built farther north, they will loose that income and also for the retailers.

Why build a 2nd bridge next to the existing one? Doesn't that sound stupid?? In that case, expand it. Here's the deal. There is a developer on SPI that is about to build the Ocean Tower 24-story condo and wants the causeway to be built near the condo just like the Bridge Point Condos. PI won't here of it even though the developer asked PI to annex the norther part of SPI (which they did!) and this is another fight brewering between the two. Pi not only annexed the north but the south as well, which is Isla Blanca Park where the jetties is at. This effectivaly trapped SPI with no hope for future expansion.

To make a long story short, don't hold your breath for the 2nd causeway. It's held up in the Legislature and even if it gets built, your looking at about 10 years! Don't turn blue. So there is greed, anger, and confusion over this bridge to last a life time.

June 3, 2005 — South Padre Island already has the tallest structures in the Rio Grande Valley but when construction crews break ground for the Sapphire Condos this summer, the 30-story twin towers will soar above the rest.

“It will change the island’s skyline. (The towers) will be one of the first things that tourists will see when they come off the bridge,” said Melissa Zamora, communications coordinator for the SPI Visitors and Convention Bureau.

Sapphire will be the latest addition to a list of hotels and condos that have moved to the island in the last couple of years.

Since the late 1990s, Island hotels and other available rooms have increased by 41 percent, according to convention bureau statistics.

Since 1998, the island has seen a 41-percent increase in hotel room occupancy.

Last summer, the island enjoyed one of its busiest hotel occupancy seasons, renting nearly 4,000-plus available rooms, city figures show.

The four-story Holiday Inn Express opened in March and crews continue working on other condominium projects along the bay and gulf sides of the island.

The Sapphire towers will stand at 310 Padre Blvd., next to the Sheraton Hotel.

The towers will have 91 two- to three-bedroom suites. Two 11-story bungalows will stand adjacent to the towers.

“All of them are going to have a balcony facing the gulf and a balcony to the west, facing the bay,” said Charlene Goebelt, Sapphire’s director of sales.

“Everybody will have beautiful sunset views of the bay and sunrises of the gulf,” she said.

Crown Jewel penthouses will be installed atop each tower. The two-story units will offer about 4,700 square feet.

The towers will have a covered walkway that will connect with the Sheraton Hotel. Residents of Sapphire will have access to the Sheraton amenities, such as the swimming pool and restaurant.

The first four floors of the towers will house such a fitness club, a spa and a locker area, which will provide space for people to place their beach equipment.

“There isn’t anything like this anywhere else on the island,” Goebelt said.

Goebelt estimated the price per square foot would be around $335, pricing the smallest unit at about $430,000. Penthouses are priced at about $1.5 million.

The project is one of several by Houston developer Randall Davis. His signature architecture is neo-classical high rise condominiums.

Davis has built the Gotham, Renoir and Manhattan condominiums in Houston. In Las Vegas, he started building the Metropolis Las Vegas, also a condo high-rise.